Download Flexibility

9/6/2012
Flexibility
 Ability to use your joints
Flexibility
Unit 4
fully through a wide
range of motion
 Having long muscles
that allow your
joints to be free enough
to allow adequate
movement.
Flexibility
Flexibility Benefits
 People who are flexible are often involved in
 Less risk of injury
sports
 Regular flexibility training allows for greater
sports performance
 Young people generally more flexible than older
people
 Female typically more flexible than males
Flexibility
Flexibility is
• the elasticity of muscles when
stretching.
• the ability to move joints
through a full range of
motion.
• A joint is a place in the
body where bones come
together
Examples of joints:
• the ankles, knees, hips,
wrist, elbows, shoulders
 Fewer back & posture problems
 Function more efficiently
Range of Motion (ROM)
• ROM means the
degree of movement
you have.
• Gymnasts have a
large range of
motion around the
shoulder joint.
• Hurdlers have a
large range of
motion around the
hip joint.
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Flexibility Facts
Joints that benefit from a good range of
motion:
• ankle, hip, and shoulder joints
• Note that these are known as ball-and-socket
joints
• permit movement in many directions (rotation,
flexion, extension)
Flexibility Facts: Knee & Elbow
• The knee and elbow are
known as hinge joints.
• They allow only an
opening and closing of
a joint.
Flexibility Facts - Benefits
Flexibility Facts
Health benefits of stretching:
• Stretching short muscles helps improve
posture
• Good posture helps prevent or relieve back
pain and reduces fatigue
• Flexibility helps reduce risk of injury
• For elderly people, flexibility helps prevent
joint aches and pains.
The following people are more flexible:
• Athletes: because they practice stretching
often.
• Young people tend to be more flexible than
older people.
Flexibility Facts- Hypermobility
Flexibility Facts
Hypermobility: when a person is unusually flexible in
certain joints
• Example: when a person can extend the knee,
If you do not do flexibility exercises and do
only strength exercises:
• this will lead to decreased range of motion.
• this condition is sometimes called being
muscle-bound.
elbow, thumb, or wrist joint past a straight
line, as if the joint could bend backwards.
Hypermobility can be a problem:
• People with hypermobile joints are prone to
joint injuries.
• Arthritis may develop (a disease in which
the joints become inflamed).
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Flexibility Facts
Flexibility Facts
The back muscles are important
to strengthen because:
• the back is important for
posture.
• sports performance is
improved
• (strengthening the
abdominal area is also
important)
Principle of Progression:
• You need to gradually increase the intensity of
exercise.
• Intensity can be increased by stretching farther as
you gain flexibility.
Principle of Specificity:
• Flexibility exercises improve only the specific
muscles at the specific joints that you stretch.
You need to stretch your
muscles longer than normal
to increase your flexibility.
Improving Flexibility
F.I.T.T. applied to Flexibility
The difference between ROM and stretching
exercises:
• Stretching: normally involve stationary
movements (standing or sitting and
stretching a specific muscle group).
• Range of motion: involve moving the legs
or arms through normal movements for a
joint but may not stretch the muscles.
Improving Flexibility
Improving Flexibility
Best type of exercises
in the warm-up:
• The exercises in the
warm-up should be
sport-specific.
• They should get
progressively more
intense.
Three different ways to stretch:
• Static stretching
• PNF stretching
• Ballistic stretching
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Improving Flexibility – Static
Stretching
Static stretching involves sitting or standing
and slowly stretching and holding a
stretch for
15-30 seconds.
Improving Flexibility: PNF Stretching
-PNF stretching involves contracting the
muscle to be stretched before stretching it.
-While this stretch is being held, a
contraction of the opposing muscle is
performed
•(e.g., if the hamstrings are being stretched, contract the
quadriceps).
Improving Flexibility: Ballistic Stretching
Ballistic stretches involve a series of rhythmical
and smooth dynamic movements that are
often sports specific.
Example: Swinging your leg back and forth
• Sports performance will benefit from ballistic
stretching.
• Ballistic stretching should be done after a static
stretching warm-up.
Improving Flexibility
• Athletes should use static, PNF, and
ballistic stretching to improve their sporting
performance.
• Start with static or PNF stretching.
Improving Flexibility
Static stretching is considered safer than
ballistic stretching because:
• Ballistic stretching involves bouncing
motions.
• Bouncing motions may cause the
muscle to overstretch.
• If motions are too vigorous, this may
lead to injuries.
PNF Guidelines
Guidelines for a static stretch or PNF program:
• Stretch each muscle group daily.
• Warm up before stretching.
• You can use a partner or you can use your own
body weight to provide an overload.
• Hold each stretch for 15 to 30 seconds. Rest for
10 seconds.
• Stretch each muscle group.
• Repeat exercises several times.
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Ballistic Guidelines
Improving Flexibility
Guidelines for ballistic stretching:
• Begin with static stretching or PNF warm-up.
• Use slow, gentle bounces using the motion of
your body part to stretch the specific muscle.
Caution: No stretch should cause pain
Stretching should not cause pain—there
should (at most) be some slight discomfort
when stretching.
• Bounce in rhythmical fashion slowly and gently 10-
15 times.
• Stretch each muscle group.
• Repeat exercises several times.
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